Freedom House Report on Haiti Released

Freedom House recently published their 2015 report on Freedom in the World. Below is the overview of the section on Haiti. Haiti’s ratings decreased this year (down 1 point on a 7-point scale) because of the government’s failure to hold elections on time, harassment of human rights defenders and political opponents, and violence against media critical of the current administration.

Freedom in the World 2015

Freedom House

August 2015

OVERVIEW:

Legislative and municipal elections due in 2011 and 2013 were delayed for another year in 2014, causing Haiti to descend toward political crisis. As Haitians took to the streets in protest, Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe resigned in December at the recommendation of a presidential commission.

The double homicide of human rights defender Daniel Dorsainvil and his wife in February and the fruitless police investigation deepened fear among activists. The government made some moves to improve its capacity to respond to rights violations, but in practice enjoyment of civil liberties did not markedly improve. However, an appellate court did reinstate human rights charges against former dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, and the case continues against his regime despite his death in October.

The great economic insecurity of the majority of the Haitian population is one of the main contributors to Haitians’ inability to enforce their individual rights. The vast majority of the population lives in extreme poverty, with 76 percent of people earning less than $2 per day.